Harry Potter and the Black Gate
by WrathofOsiris
Summary: -UPDATED- It's Harry's 6th year at Hogwarts and everything is going abnormally uneventful, but due to a discovery by Hermione, the group of friends are thrown into a Dark World they'd never imagine possible.
1. Back to Hogwarts

Bum bum bum! My first relative attempt at a Harry Potter fan fiction, and I hope it goes well, seeing as I came up with the general idea back when I read the first book. However, I need to add some things so you'll understand what in the heck is going on.

First off, the original character who shows up a little later in the fic. He is much like Ron and Hermione in the fact that they were all friends with Harry and each other from the beginning. A lot of stuff that had happened in previous books will be "flash backed" in which it will explain how the original character had acted during that situation. Hope that makes sense.

Secondly, I'm trying to add "romance" into this, mainly because, well I've never written a romance before, so I figured I'd give it a shot. However, there will still be plenty of action.

Third, unlike Rowling's writing which only took place from Harry's perspective, this will focus on Harry, Hermione, and Janus (the original character). Sorry Ron lovers, he doesn't play much of a part in this fiction. I however, will try very hard to make the change in perspective very clear, most likely at the beginning of chapters. I will not be changing event. If an event in the fiction has started, it will end in that perspective.

Fourth, I hope to explain everything throughout the story, so if there's something you don't get, finish reading what I had, or even wait for an update, chances are something will be explained. If you still don't understand, you can ask me personally. My e-mail is readily available.

Well that's it for now; I hope you enjoy what I write. I'll probably think of something else, but oh well.

Oh, and The Black Gate isn't mentioned in this chapter, and probably won't be for awhile, so don't go wondering.

**I do not own Harry Potter, or any of the characters created by JK Rowling. I do not intend to profit by this in anyway, and am only writing for fun. Don't sue me…**

_Harry Potter and the Black Gate_

**Chapter One** - Back to Hogwarts

Harry sat upright, finally giving up on trying to sleep. He glanced over at his clock, squinting for he wasn't wearing his glasses. It was three o'clock in the morning. He laid back down, hoping to get at least some sleep.

Harry Potter was no ordinary boy. Sure, during the summer holidays, he spent most of his time moping around his Aunt and Uncle's house on Privet Drive, trying to avoid his cousin Dudley, but once summer ended, he would go to Hogwarts School of Witchcraft and Wizardry. Yes, Harry was a wizard, a very good one at that. He couldn't wait to get back to school, and see his friends again, that and get away from his Muggle (non-magic folk) relatives. Harry's parents were killed by a very powerful and very evil Dark Wizard when he was very young, and he was placed in the care of his closest living relatives. They, however, hated anything to do with him and his _kind,_ and Harry was treated horribly even in his youth.

He rolled over again, trying hopelessly to drift off into slumber, but his excitement was getting the best of him again. He wanted to see his friends, he wanted to see Hagrid the Hogwarts Gamekeeper, and he wanted to play Quidditch. For the entire summer Harry had longed to hop on his broomstick and chase down the Golden Snitch. For he was the Seeker of the Gryffindor Quidditch team, and it was his duty to chase down a very small and very fast golden ball, and if he caught it, it would award his team one hundred and fifty points and it would end the game. Harry imagined himself high above the Quidditch field, the wind blowing through his untidy black hair. He smiled in his fake sleep, and rolled over again, this time glancing at the clock. Three fifteen. Harry growled and sat back up. He put his glasses on and looked around the room. He wasn't going to fall asleep, so he decided to glance over his books, before going to school.

Harry climbed out of bed, and walked over to his desk where he had placed his new school books weeks before. Harry had gone to Diagon Ally almost immediately after he received his Hogwarts letter. It was his only taste of the wizarding world he had managed to receive all summer, and it was hard enough to get the Order to allow him to go.

The Order of the Phoenix was a group formed by the great wizard Albus Dumbledore during Voldemort's (the wizard who killed Harry's parents) first rise to power. After Voldemort failed to kill Harry and was thought to be destroyed, the Order was no longer needed. However, during Harry's fourth year at Hogwarts, Voldemort rose again, more powerful than ever, and the Order of the Phoenix was brought back. The Order now spent all their effort into finding information about Voldemort and dealing with it accordingly. They also were protecting Harry, for he was believed to be a target. So Harry was shunned from the wizarding world during his summer holidays, and now he wasn't even allowed to keep in contact with his friends.

Harry's green eyes flicked through the pages of _The Standard Book of Spells, Grade 6_ hoping to pass the time. He kept glancing over at the clock, hopeful that maybe more time had passed than he had thought.

Three thirty two.

Harry began reading through _One Thousand Magical Herbs and Fungi._

Three forty six.

He picked up _Flying with the Cannons_ and browsed through it.

Four twelve.

Harry sighed, and plopped onto his back. He stayed there for quite awhile, avoiding the clock, thinking maybe if he didn't look more time would come to pass. He began hoping dearly for any contact with his friends or maybe even the Order. The Order _was_ his only contact, but they had only sent him a few letters, not even revealing any information to the on-goings of his world.

Last year, this would have made Harry very angry and frustrated, but he had decided to play it cool. He'd learn everything once he returned to Hogwarts, and he knew that the Order was just looking out for him.

"They could at least give me an idea as to what is going on" muttered Harry, but as if his words had been heard, a large tawny owl came screeching through his window, and dropped a small folded piece of parchment into his hands. Before Harry could thank the bird, it had flapped its way out his window and into the night sky. Harry flipped open the parchment and perused its contents quickly.

_We will arrive at 10:00 AM to bring you_

_to the train. Go to sleep Harry._

It wasn't signed, but Harry knew that the note was from the Order. Curious however, that they knew he was awake. Harry stood up and peered out his window onto Privet Drive. The dull orange glow from the streets lights gave an eerie appearance to the empty street. Harry shrugged away the thought that somebody from the Order would have been out there, and returned to the bed.

Five sixteen.

Surprisingly, Harry fell asleep rather quickly, despite his excitement. He had a dreamless sleep, which was shocking, because Harry had been experiencing nightmares all summer. He kept seeing his godfather, Sirius Black, alive and well, and then suddenly get torn away into darkness. He also dreamt of his friends being killed by Voldemort as he watched in horror from the distance, unable to do anything. Harry would wake up panting, but as his scar wouldn't burn, he knew they were only dreams.

The sixteen year old boy awoke with a jump. He fell out of his bed, banging his elbow hard on the floor. Sitting there dazed for a bit, he finally realized what had startled him.

Harry's Uncle Vernon was screaming at him from the floor below.

"POTTER, HOW DARE YOU TELL THESE…THESE PEOPLE TO COME TO _MY_ HOUSE?"

Harry gave a perplexed look, and shifted his eyes over to his clock.

"Ten o'clock!" He shouted, as he changed into a pair of jeans and a T-shirt as fast as he could. Uncle Vernon was still screaming, but Harry wasn't listening, he was far too busy trying to pack up his school supplies and clothes. He heard a low murmur and Uncle Vernon's screaming had stopped. Harry assumed that somebody from the Order had told him to shut up. He scrambled around his room, throwing everything he thought he'd need into his trunk, and fluttered out the door, trunk in hand.

"GWAH!!!" In his excitement, Harry tripped over his second-hand clothes and rolled loudly down the stairs, the large trunk clunking its way behind him. Harry landed with a loud thump, rubbing his head furiously; he stood up, only to be clobbered by his trunk.

"You alright Potter?" came a grisly voice from the den. Harry recognized it immediately as that of the ex-Auror Alastor Moody.

_Clump. Clump. Clump._

Moody's wooden leg banged across the den floor, and his chiseled face popped it's way into the hallway where Harry laid on the floor, his trunk on top of him.

_"Locomotor Trunk!"_ Moody had his wand pointed at Harry's trunk, and as he finished speaking, it lifted off the ground, and began to hover near him.

"Come on Harry, get up," came another voice, this one slightly hoarse.

Harry pulled himself up, and brushed off his clothes.

Moody growled at Harry, "Come on boy, we're running late as it is."

Harry look down at his watch, it was twenty past ten and the Hogwarts train would be leaving in only forty minutes. Harry looked back at Moody who was beckoning him to follow.

"I feel like I'm forgetting something."

"If you've forgotten anything, one of us will return for it later, iafter/i we've safely brought you to the train." The second voice from before now revealed itself as Remus Lupin, who had just stepped into the hallway, looking impatient. Both Moody and Lupin ignored the noise Uncle Vernon made at this idea. "Come on Harry."

"How are we getting there?" Harry questioned, but nobody seemed to want to answer questions, so Harry obediently followed Moody, out of Number 4 Privet Drive and into the street. It was a cloudy day, and it was beginning to rain. Harry hoped their journey wouldn't be like the last time he rode with the Advance Guard, in which they flew on broomsticks. To his delight, however, Moody had his wand out, and the all familiar bang of the Knight Bus rang through Harry's ears. The three story triple-decker bus shot into view, and was now rumbling quietly in front of them.

"'Ello 'Arry," came Stan Shunpike's voice from the front door of the bus. The about twenty year old conductor, wearing a purple uniform, stepped out into the street, eyeing the Advance Guard, but smiling brightly at Harry., "Sixth year eh?"

Harry went to say something, but only nodded; catching the impatient glare Moody was giving him.

"Take the boy's stuff, Shunpike, we're in a hurry." Moody spat at the conductor, his magical eye swirling around the bus, making sure there would be no danger.

Stan looked slightly taken a back, but grabbed Harry's trunk nonetheless, and carried it aboard. Harry and the rest of the guard climbed into the bus, and before they could even sit down, it let out a load bang and they were speeding away.

Harry was used to the Bus making sharp turns and nearly hitting things on the road, he had been on the bus a few times before. Harry smiled, looking back at his first time, on the bus, but was brought back to reality when the bus came to a very sudden stop.

"Kings Cross Station, London!" yelled the driver Ernie Prang, an elderly wizard wearing very thick glasses.

Harry gasped. "Wow that quickly?"

Stan Shunpike was beaming, still holding Harry's trunk. "We've added some additions." He winked at Harry, and carried his luggage off the bus.

The Advance Guard, and then Harry followed.

Stan put down the trunk, and then turned to Moody, "That'll be eleven sickles, Alastor." He seemed to be getting over his speech problems.

Moody handed Stan several silver coins, and eyed him carefully as he disappeared back into the bus. "Come on Harry."

Harry nodded, and followed Moody as he lifted the trunk, complaining about not being able to use magic in front of Muggles. Harry looked around expectantly as they passed platform eight.

"Their already on the train, arrived very early this morning. God knows why," came Lupin's voice from behind, sounding like he could read Harry's mind.

Harry and the Guard hurried their way to the hidden wall which leads to platform nine and three quarters, and just as quickly as they got there, they vanished through the wall and were now facing the beautiful scarlet Hogwarts Express.

Harry sighed, "I'm home."

Moody was already loading Harry's trunk onto the train, and as he finished, he turned to Harry. "Get on now." Moody was smiling, which looked extremely odd. Harry hurried himself onto the train, and began moving through the corridor looking into each of the compartment's hoping to find at least somebody he knew. Finally, at the end of the train, Harry spotted the familiar flaming red hair of his best friend, Ronald Weasley.

"Is he…asleep?" Harry pondered out loud, peering through the compartment window. "Odd, maybe they did get here really early."

Harry fumbled his way in and sat down, next to Ron, hoping to maybe get some more sleep himself. Sitting across from him, were his other two friends, Hermione Granger and Janus Xethe. Janus was sitting straight up and not moving, however, due to the fact that he wasn't responding to Harry's entrance, Harry assumed he was asleep as well. Janus had his arm around Hermione, who was lying up against him, with her head on his chest, she too fast asleep.

All of his friends had changed so much over the summer. Janus' untidy spiky hair was no much longer, but still looked like it wasn't supposed to be spiked like that. It bent down covering part of his face and ears. He wore his usual sun glasses, shielding his comforting black eyes. Janus' eyes almost always full of caring and warmth, which surprised Harry, for they were so coldly dark. Janus looked much older than he had the year before, but that wasn't very astonishing, for he always had a knack for acting and looking much older and mature than he really was. However, his usually clear face, now a dark goatee on his chin, and a very light shadow of facial hair that moved up to his ears. He also a light mustache, but it was barely visible.

Hermione let out slight groan in her sleep, and shifted herself, putting herself deeper into Janus' loving grasp.

Harry smiled.

Janus had practically fallen in love with Hermione the moment he saw her. Harry remembered perfectly that day on the Hogwarts Express, when she burst in, looking for Neville Longbottom's toad. He had blurted out "Wow, she's absolutely beautiful" under his breath, and was staring at her with a look of absolute affection. Hermione wasn't as quick to take onto Janus as he was to her however. He, unlike most of the Hogwarts students wanted and tried to be her friend, but Harry wasn't sure whether that was because he liked her so much, or if he was just being the extremely friendly person he was. They quickly became friends, mainly because he had the same look on education as she did, and was probably just as smart as her. However, it wasn't until he had gone after her when she overheard Ron insulting her that she began to show the same affection. They had never told Harry what happened before the troll showed up. Over the years, Janus showed even more devotion to her. He had stayed with her almost day and night when she had been petrified their second year and he had comforted and supported during her troubles with the Time Turner in their third year. Oddly, Janus had vanished for most of the fourth year, which wouldn't have been so unusual, seeing as he would frequently disappear for short periods of time, but he was gone for almost half of fourth year. He had turned up at the Yule Ball, looking like nothing happened, with the same goofy smile had always wore, at least when he wasn't with Hermione. He didn't even take offense to Viktor Krum and Hermione going to the ball together, and he let them deal with it themselves, only to swoop in and steal Hermione's heart once again after Krum had left. Fifth year was relatively uneventful for their relationship, minus the fact that they had grown even closer.

Hermione let out another light grown, which had brought his attention to her, and getting a closer look, he nearly gasped. He almost immediately thought of the night of the Yule Ball, when she had looked so pretty and so different that he didn't even realize it was her until closer inspection. However, she looked absolutely gorgeous now. She was no longer the bushy haired, slightly bucked toothed girl who acted and even gave off the appearance of a very stuck up bossy snob, but in her place was a girl with straight silky her that ran down her back. Her teeth had been fixed in their fourth year, but the changed seemed to be now taking an even greater affect, adding more to her beauty. She even dressed herself differently, now wearing a pair of (as Harry noted, several times) very tight jeans, and an even (as Harry noted even more times) a very tight pink shirt, which bore a glittery heart across her torso. Harry nearly slapped himself as he found himself staring at her chest, which had well, grown considerably larger from the previous year. She had all the right curves in all the right places, she had gotten herself a light tan over the summer, and Harry found himself gawking at her even when he didn't want to. Just by looking at her Harry could tell she wasn't the "schoolwork is everything-don't break rules" girl anymore. She actually _looked_ rebellious. For a split moment, Harry found himself extremely jealous of Janus, wanting to have Hermione to himself, but he shook that out of his mind very quickly.

Ron was the only one had hadn't changed, he did grow taller, and looked more lanky, but that was about it. Harry wondered if he had changed radically over the summer. He was partially right. Harry had grown a lot taller, and his height probably rivaled Ron's. His face was much fuller too, now that he had been getting proper meals from the Dursleys. (The Order had threatened them into it) However, as with Ron, Harry's changes were totally dwarfed by Janus' and Hermione's.

Harry sighed. He sat there staring out the window, watching the country side go by, losing himself in his own little world. The witch with her tea cart showed up shortly after Harry had settled himself, and poked her head into the compartment.

"Care for some treats off the cart" She said loudly.

Harry glared at her.

"Oh, sorry." She whispered. She had turned to leave, but Harry jumped up and stopped her (catching another glimpse of Hermione's chest), he had realized he was rather hungry. He bought the lot, which had normally did, a bit of everything, and brought it back to his seat. He quietly ate a few Chocolate Frogs and drank some pumpkin juice, quite pleased with himself. It was very quiet, which was rather abnormal, but he was at peace.

"Did you enjoy you vacation Harry?"

Harry jumped, not expecting anybody to speak. He looked outside expecting to see one of his school mates, but the corridors were empty. Harry turned back around, and jumped again. Janus was beaming at him from the other side of the compartment. He had taken off his sun glasses revealing his warm, confident eyes. They reminded Harry of Dumbledore.

"Did you enjoy you vacation Harry?" He asked again, acting as though he hadn't asked it once before.

Harry nodded, and smiled back. It was good to be talking with friends again.

"Ah, that's great. Mine was a bit hectic. Finally met Hermione's parents, great bunch they are, for Muggles." He beamed at Hermione, who was still asleep in his arms. "Watched a few local Quidditch matches, and did some work with the Order." His voice sounded almost the same as his eyes looked. It was very soft, and very calm. He smiled at Harry again.

Harry felt a surge of jealousy, he had spent his entire summer with the Dursley's, which he was sure even Janus, as kind hearted as he was, could find enjoyable.

Harry started to mention this, but was cut out by Janus. "But I shouldn't be talking about all the fun I had, I'd start to feel bad, what with you spending all that time with your Muggle relatives, shut off from your world." He saw the look of gratitude on Harry's face. "Don't worry Harry, you're with friends now. We'll make sure you have as much fun as possible this year."

Harry couldn't help but smile, it was probably the most he'd done it all summer, first time in a long while in which he was truly happy.

Hermione stirred, apparently hearing Harry and Janus' conversation, and opened her eyes. For a few seconds, she still left herself in Janus' hold, and appeared as though she was going to go back to sleep, but she groggily sat herself upright. She yawned, stretching her arms, which incidentally tightened her shirt even more, which forced Harry to look frantically around compartment. It took a couple seconds, but she suddenly noticed Harry was there, and jumped back into awareness.

"Oh, Harry, how are you?" She was smiling brightly. Harry couldn't help but notice that her smile lit up her entire face, and accentuated her brown eyes. Harry noticed from the moment she had opened them that they were more bright and exuberant than ever, and (as he was beginning to think was impossible) added even more to her exquisiteness.

"I'm doing fine now that I'm back with friends." Harry replied to her, Hermione blushing slightly. "Summer was horrible with the Dursleys as usual."

Hermione gave him a sympathetic look. "Oh, I almost forgot." She blurted out, as she stood out and rushed out of the door.

"What's got into her?" Harry asked, eyeing Janus profusely.

Janus shrugged. "Dunno." He yawned, still apparently feeling the after effects of his nap, and stretched his arms, causing a small square box that was hanging from his neck slide into view.

Harry glanced at it quickly, and recognized it as Janus' "Card-Box." Harry smirked slightly, remembering the first time he learned why Janus had it and who he really was, although he wasn't sure why he was smirking.

Janus was probably as extraordinary, if not more as Harry Potter. He was born into a very rare group of wizards, who at birth retained knowledge and usage of all of the most powerful spells known to the wizarding world. He was extremely knowledgeable in the world of magic, and knew far more than most fully grown wizards. Most of the wizards in this group also held control of what were normally long forgotten wizard abilities. These ancient abilities were extremely powerful, and only a few people in the entire world knew about them. Janus had retained the power of "Card Controlling" and he was bestowed with a group of cards at birth, each one holding powerful and useful spells. Janus is the only wizard alive who can use this magic, and it's the same with the other wizards like him. Each of their special powers is unique to them, and Dark Wizards would kill anybody in their path for that kind of power. That's why the group was a complete secret, and very few people had ever heard of them.

Janus had arrived at Hogwarts as a normal wizard, and quickly became friends with Harry, Ron, and Hermione. It wasn't until later in the year that they found out who he actually was, Hermione had pieced together many random tidbits she had found, and had discovered his true identify. Impressed at her findings, Janus had revealed to her, Harry, and Ron, who he was and any information Hermione had missed out on. However, he made them swear they wouldn't tell anybody else, and that the only other person who knew was Dumbledore himself. Upon asking why such a powerful wizard would need Hogwarts schooling, Janus told them that he may know very powerful spells, but he wasn't born with the basics that were taught at Hogwarts, such at the Summoning Charm. They didn't believe him, and they were right. During their fourth year, Harry had forced Dumbledore to tell him why Janus was actually at Hogwarts. He had been sent as requested by Dumbledore, to keep an eye on Harry, but he got too involved, and was removed from the project. However, Janus had become so attached to Hermione and his other friends that he refused to leave, and incidentally, remained at the school.

Harry looked back at the "Card-Box." He had only seen it used a few times, and Janus had only made use of a weaker spells. They did come in handy nonetheless, especially one card, that created an impenetrable barrier at the cost of the users energy. Harry wondered occasionally about what powerful spells lay hidden in that box. Harry idid/i get to see Janus use all the cards at once, which summon a menacing beast with great power. Janus had used it in attempts to stop Voldemort in the previous year, but failed. Even Janus wasn't sure why Voldemort was able to overcome his summoning.

Harry adverted his eyes from the box, feeling like Janus would get angry if he started too long. He knew that would never happen, given Janus' nature, but he had seen him become very serious, and then angry, which was something he wished to never see again. It was something else that reminded him of Dumbledore; Janus became a different person when he became serious or angry. His normally warm and caring face became cold and stern, concentrated, he became somebody else, somebody Harry didn't like.

Harry's random thoughts about Janus were interrupted as Hermione returned, now sporting her Hogwarts robes, which covered her body very well. Harry was glad at this, he didn't feel like constantly forcing himself to look around to prevent himself from gawking at her chest and body. She was also carrying a lightly wrapped package.

"This is for you Harry. We couldn't send you a birthday present over the holidays, so I figured I'd give yours to you on the train." She handed him the package, and sat back down next Janus (He put his arm around her again).

Harry opened it, trying not to seem overexcited. He smiled when he saw the several Quidditch accessories she had given him, including new gloves, ("Dragons hide!" Hermione added) more Broom polish, and various other contraptions. She had also given him several Chocolate Frogs. "Wow thanks Hermione!"

She beamed at him, jumping up and giving him hug, to his surprise. "It's so good to have you here again Harry."

She was right, Harry couldn't have been happier, sitting there, being with his friends. Hermione sat back down, and Harry noticed that she had clipped her prefect badge onto her robes.

"Hermione…" She looked up at him. "Shouldn't you be up in the Prefect car?"

"I thought so too. Ron and I had gone to the car, expecting to have to patrol the corridors, but the Head Boy and Girl just told us to go into a compartment and that they'd contact us if they needed us."

"Odd." Harry noted.

"Yeah, I thought so too at first, but it just doesn't seem like anything too severe. I figure we should just forget about it." Hermione whispered, catching Harry by surprise. He had never heard her talk like that. Normally, she'd be overly curious at why they weren't following normal Hogwarts procedures.

Harry pondered the idea for a short while, and finally came to an agreement with Hermione. _It wasn't a big deal._ Still, something hovered at the back of his mind. Something just wasn't right. Harry shrugged it off again, nothing was ever perfectly normal in the wizarding world.

"Wha…ah…what's going on? Oh, Harry, when did you get here?" Ron had finally woken up.

"Ron, seriously, we've been on the train for hours." Hermione shot at him.

"I got here shortly before the train left. Advance Guard was running a bit late, which is normal." Harry added.

Ron shrugged, and it wasn't long before the four of them were discussing their summer, and all the events that had happened. Harry was thoroughly enjoying himself, and was glad none of them had brought up Voldemort or Sirius. He hadn't been this happy in months, and he didn't want it ruined. After a few games of Exploding Snap, a game of wizards chess, and a run in with Malfoy, the train finally began to slow down.

Harry's heart leapt. It was finally time, he was there. He was going back to Hogwarts.

**Note:** Yeah okay, Janus' "Card-Power" is a little lame and cliché, but oh well, that was the original idea I came up with and I'm not about the change it. I hope you enjoyed it. 


	2. The Dream

**Chapter 2 **– The Dream

Harry, Ron, Hermione, and Janus all sat in anticipation as the Hogwarts castle slowly came into view. Its massive towers and many lights grew larger as the train pulled into Hogsmeade station and came to a full stop.

"You three better change into your robes, and fast." Hermione said, giving them a slightly arrogant look.

"Well, she's still bossy." Muttered Harry as he got up and left the compartment with Janus and Ron.

Janus gave him an odd look, and then shrugged. The three boys moved through the corridor, avoiding various students, waving hello to fellow Gryffindors, and finally made it to their luggage. Each one pulled out their robes and vanished into different compartments to change, only to return a few minutes later.

"Ready?" Janus asked the two, now sporting the normal black Hogwarts robes.

Harry and Ron nodded, and they returned to their compartment where Hermione was impatiently waiting. She beamed at them as they returned to their seats, picking up whatever they had brought onto the train. The four friends ambled out of their compartment and pushed their way through the vast crowd of Hogwarts students making their way out of the train. After around ten minutes of squeezing their way through students who apparently had forgotten to change as well, they reached the now open doors of the train, and stepped out into the starless, cloudy day.

"Looks like it's going to rain." Harry spoke out randomly, looking up at the sky.

"Harry, this is _Britain_, it always rains here." Ron said jokingly.

Harry chuckled. "Yea, I guess you're right."

And as if Harry was asking for it, the heavens opened up, a loud boom of thunder cracked across the sky, and it began to rain heavily.

"Thanks a lot Harry!" Ron muttered sarcastically.

Harry grunted, knowing that Ron was joking with him, but was more interested in getting out of the rain. Janus was holding the side of his robes over Hermione, shielding her from the ever increasing downpour, and the two of them were hurrying up to the carriages that would bring them to the school. Harry used his own arm to shelter his face and he and Ron followed their two friends quickly. After what seemed to be eternity in the rain (even though they weren't traveling that far) they finally reached the (as Harry once believed to be horseless) Thestral pulled carriages. Even though Harry had spent a lot of time with the Thestrals in his previous year, he still couldn't get over the fact that they were horrid looking beasts. Thestrals are huge winged horses with white shining eyes, dragonish faces and necks, and skeletal black bodies, and are invisible to anyone who has not seen death, which means that most of the students Hogwarts don't have the ability to see them. Harry however had to watch Cedric Diggory (A sixth year Hufflepuff at the time) be killed by one of the worst spells in wizarding knowledge: _Avada Kedavra_. One of the Unforgivable Curses, and said to be unblockable with no counter-curse, _Avada Kedavra_ produces a jet of green light, and it's target is killed instantly leaving only a mark of sheer terror on their faces. Cedric was killed by Wormtail (Voldemort's servant) when both he and Harry had grabbed a hold of the TriWizard cup, which had been bewitched into a PortKey (an item that is used to teleport wizards to specific places.)

Harry hurried himself into the carriage with Janus, Ron, and Hermione, trying dearly to ignore the Thestrals; the thought of death was reminding him of Sirius.

_Sirius is dead. There is nothing you can do about it, just let it go, you can't spend the rest of your life mourning over him._ Harry told himself repeatedly.

Harry shut the idea of Sirius and the Thestrals out of his mind. He climbed quickly into the black carriage, and seated himself in the worn out leather bench that had long lost its cushion through the many years of Hogwarts usage. Harry had sat himself next to Ron, who was peering out the window, squinting very hard at the front of the carriages, obviously hoping he'll somehow see the Thestrals.

"Ron, we've told you at _least_ a hundred times. You _cannot_ see them unless you've witnessed death." Hermione uttered, her teeth chattering.

Janus had wrapped his robes around Hermione tightly, and they were huddled very close together trying to keep warm, but Hermione was still shaking from the rain, despite Janus' considerate attempts to keep her warm.

"Oh, I know that." Ron said, trying to make himself not look stupid, "But I just don't get it, how can they just not be there?" Ron kept looking hopelessly.

Hermione sighed, completely lost for words. She whimpered in the cold and wrapped her arms tightly around Janus, trying desperately to stop shivering. She rested her head on his shoulder and sighed deeply, somewhat overcoming the cold, however she was still shaking. Janus gave her an affectionate look, and rested his head lightly on the top of hers, humming a tranquil tune that Harry didn't recognize. Harry wondered if there was some magic involved in Janus' song however, for even he was intoxicated by it's calming bliss, he sat back feeling very warm. Hermione let out another deep sigh and smiled, blissfully unaware of the world around her. Janus' melody echoed through the tiny carriage, giving a serene feel of warmth and carelessness. Harry drifted off into a world of peace, a place he never wanted to leave, a place where nothing could ever go wrong, and sadness was unheard of. However, his exploits in this world came to a short, as the Thestral drawn carriages came to a halt, just outside the Hogwarts grounds. At this moment, Janus stopped humming and the carriage's passengers were all thrown back into reality. Harry and Ron got up and prepared to leave the carriage, but Hermione and Janus stayed seated. She seemed to still be in her own little world, wrapped carefully in Janus' arms. He kissed the top of her head gently, and spoke a soft voice.

"It's time to leave, Hermione."

She let out a sort of confused noise, like she had just been woken up. The beautiful girl looked up, staring affectionately into Janus' eyes. She smiled brightly, which caused Janus to smile as well. Their love for each other was unparalleled; Harry could see that now, and despite his earlier lust for Hermione, he knew that she would never leave Janus. He could see the overwhelming love in her eyes, and in his.

Harry found himself feeling incredibly happy for them, they were a perfect pair, and he smiled at the thought. "Come on you two, or we're going to miss the sorting."

Janus and Hermione nodded, and both stood up, shortly afterwards following Ron and Harry out of the coach. It had stopped raining, and the sun was shining brightly (which was out of the ordinary because they normally arrived at night), and in the distance an incandescent rainbow filled the sky. It was like no other rainbow Harry had ever seen; it was full of light, not the normal translucent one's you'd see, but appeared almost solid. Its vivid colors spread throughout the sky, waving slightly in the arising summer heat. Harry had a strange feeling that Janus had something to do with this, for the reason that it gave off the same warm, calm feeling his song had.

"Come on Harry, why are you just standing there?"

The young wizard was abruptly brought back to reality, realizing he had fallen behind his friends, and was now being addressed by Neville Longbottom, a forgetful Gryffindor in the same year as Harry.

"Oh hello Neville, how are you?" Harry inquired the boy as they hurried up to catch the rest of the Gryffindors.

Neville let out a confirming grunt that Harry assumed meant "I'm okay." Neville didn't seem to want to talk, so Harry dropped trying to converse and walked quietly up into the Entrance way.

Harry hurried himself into the Great Hall, which was filled with its normal Start of Term feast decorations; hundreds of candles hovered silently above the tables, illuminating the room with a dull flickering light. The bewitched ceiling today reflected the current condition outside; so naturally it showed the beautiful rainbow and bright sun. It was a rare moment to see something like that in Britain. (This still confused Harry, for he had never arrived at Hogwarts during the day before.)

He walked over to the Gryffindor table, feeling extremely out of place. This was the first time at Hogwarts that nobody was staring at him, nobody was gawking at him, and even Malfoy seemed to be ignorant to his presence.

_This is good, I can be myself._ He thought. _But why do I feel so odd? Do I miss the attention? That can't be, I always hated it. It's gone though…_

__

"Hey Harry, over here!"

Harry turned to see Janus waving at him happily, beckoning him to join them at the table. He sat down next to Ron anxiously awaiting the Sorting. The first years were now making their way up to the Staff table where Professor McGonagall awaited them, standing cheerfully next to the Sorting Hat. Harry could remember his Sorting and how nervous he had felt, and he felt a surge of sympathy for the first years who were now listening intently to the Sorting Hat's song. Harry had given up bothering to listen to the song, for it wasn't at all important. He sat there, zoned out, twiddling his thumbs needlessly. His eyes wandered, eventually stopping on Cho Chang, a pretty 7th year girl in Ravenclaw. Harry had liked Cho for a very long time, and even dated her for a short period of time, but had acted like an idiot, ruining his chances.

_There are plenty of girls out there._ He told himself.

And he was right. As Harry's eyes wandered around the Great Hall, he noticed that there were _a lot_ of girls at Hogwarts, and many of them had grown into very pretty teenagers. Harry had only noticed this once before during the Yule Ball his fourth year. Harry, however, still couldn't get over the fact how much Hermione had changed, and he kept flicking his eyes over at her. She was so pretty, chatting happily with Janus. Harry felt another surge of jealousy for Janus, wanting to be the one with his arms around her.

_No no no. She's my friend. That's it._ Harry kept telling himself every time he looked at Hermione. _But I'm a teenager, it's normal for me to look at girls._ He shook his head vigorously, getting rid of the idea of him and Hermione. _But Hermione has to be the prettiest girl in school right now…Gah! NO! _Harry grabbed his head, trying desperately to clear his mind.

"Harry, you OK?" It was Hermione, her soft, tantalizing voice echoed through Harry's mind.

"Yea, I'm fine," he lied.

"You don't look too good Harry." Janus barged his way into the conversation.

"I said I'm fine, just leave me alone." Harry shot back, immediately regretting taking such a tone.

"Ooh, touchy. Okay, we'll leave you be." Janus replied with a relative joking tone.

Harry sat there, very angry with himself. Why had he gotten so angry over thinking about Hermione in that way? It was normal for people his age. She _is_ a girl, and she is very pretty. Why is it that he got so furious? Harry, again, shook the thought of Hermione as more than his best friend out of his head.

"RAVENCLAW!" shouted the Sorting Hat, and the last of the students filtered their way to the tables they had just been sorted in. Most of them had a very pale look at their faces, which made sense; they had just gone through a very nerve-racking experience.

Harry and his fellow Gryffindors waved merrily at their newcomers, who seemed to lighten up a bit at the welcoming they were receiving. After a few minutes, and after all the first years settles themselves at their respected tables, Dumbledore stood up, ready to make his speech. This brought Harry's attention to the staff table which, to him, seemed to be missing something. After pondering on it for a short while it came to him.

"Hey, where's the new Defense Against the Dark Arts teacher?" Harry whispered, getting the attention of Ron, Hermione, and Janus.

"I don't know, do you reckon they couldn't find somebody to take the job?"

"Don't be silly Ron; they can't just not have a Defense Against the Dark Arts class." Hermione said, looking quite bewildered at the lack of the teacher.

"Maybe they he hasn't arrived yet, like Professor Moody. He was late fourth year. Remember?" Janus added, hoping to resolve the issue.

"I guess, but it just seems so unlikely. Mayb---Oh Dumbledore is starting his speech."

Dumbledore had cleared his throat loudly and waved his hands calling for silence from the students.

"Welcome, welcome, and welcome to another year at Hogwarts. It's another year of learning, teaching, and fun. Another year of pranks, jokes, and detention too. (A few students laughed.) I'd like to welcome our new first years with a few new things, and some old ones too. As usual, the Forbidden Forest is off limits to any student, unless brought there by an able bodied teacher." He glanced over at Hagrid quickly, giving him a slight smirk. "The Inter House Cup and the Inter House Quidditch Cup will presume as normally this year, although the teachers have planned a few surprises for later in the year."

The students looked around anxiously, whispered their own ideas to what was going to happen quietly.

"I am also pleased to announce that Firenze, the centaur, has gladly accepted to take over the job of Divination again this year. Sadly, he could not be here today." He looked over to an empty seat where Professor Trelawney normally sat. "Furthermore, we will be reinstating the Dueling Club that was started four years ago, and they will coincide with your Defense Against the Dark Arts classes. Professor Snape and Professor Flitwick will be teaching these classes, both of which are very knowledgeable in the art of Dueling."

A slight uproar of questions came from the students, but Dumbledore quickly shut it out.

"Quiet now, all your questions will be answered in due time. Now…I believe that's all. Well then, let's start the feast."

The once empty plates on the tables were now full of all kinds of food. The students happy picked what they wanted, and ate while talking about various things.

Harry leaned in close to his friends, hoping nobody else would hear him. "Dumbledore didn't mention a new teacher, but he mentioned the class. You don't think Snape finally got the job do you?" Harry glanced up at Snape who was sitting at the staff table looking smugger than he usually did. "He seems to be happy about something."

"But if Snape took over Defense Against the Dark Arts, then who took over Potions?"

"I hope nobody, maybe they got rid of the class." Ron said looking hopeful.

"Come on now Ron, Potions is an integral part of the wizarding world, they just wouldn't get rid of it." Hermione glared at Ron, obviously annoyed with him. "Oh look here's McGonagall with our schedules now. It'll say who the teacher is on there."

Professor McGonagall handed each of them their schedules for the year and trotted off continuing her duties.

"Let's see." Hermione muttered off the different classes as she read through the list. "Ah here, Defense Against the Dark Arts."

"Hermione, there's no teacher listed."

"I noticed that Ron." She scowled him.

"Well, I guess we'll find out when we have the class, now won't we?" Janus said again trying to resolve the issue.

"I guess you're right." Hermione smiled brightly at him.

Janus put his arm around her and held her close as they ate, talking more about what was going on. There was still no mention of Voldemort or Sirius, or anything that happened the previous year for that matter. Harry was still happy about this, but the fact that there was no mention at all started to prick at the back of his mind. It was severely strange that something so important, an event that was so essential in their lives would be completely neglected, especially since Harry hadn't talked to any of them over the summer holidays.

It seemed like only a minute had passed, when the food vanished from the plates, and the students began to sift their way out heading to the common rooms. Harry, Ron, Janus, and Hermione all stood up and followed the rest of the students.

"Hermione, shouldn't you and Ron be doing your prefect duties?" Harry again noticed that they should be elsewhere.

"We were told not to. I don't know." She shrugged him off and jogged up to Janus, throwing her arms around him.

""Ello there, pretty lady." Janus smiled at her. Hermione blushed at the compliment, and the two of them walked to the common room alone, holding hands.

Harry moved his way through the students, ending up next to Ron. "Um…hey Ron, have you noticed anything, well, _different_ about Hermione?"

"What, the fact that she's an absolutely gorgeous girl, and practically every guy in the school is overly jealous of Janus?"

Harry let out a little "Yea" noise, but turned his head again to ask another question. "I did notice that, but she acts different."

"Janus seems to be having a bad effect on her, which ultimately seems to be turning out very good. I mean, look at her!"

"I had enough looking on the train." Harry said, sounding rather embarrassed.

"Gawking at her chest?" Harry looked surprised at what Ron had just said. "Yeah, I did too when I first saw her like that. Damn Janus, why didn't I think to like her when I first met her?"

Ron was sounding more jealous the Harry, but it wasn't all that surprising. He had always shown some interest in Hermione, but never really acted on it.

"Oh come on Ron, there are plenty of girls in the school. Did you see Parvarti? She looks stunning." Harry stopped himself for a second. Were he and Ron talking about girls? Harry couldn't remember ever doing that with him. They always talked about Quidditch or school, but never about girls.

"Oh I know there are pretty girls Harry, but _none_ of the look as good as Hermione."

Harry quietly nodded. He was right; none of the girls looked as good as she did.

They arrived at the Fat Lady portrait, which was actually the door that leads to the Gryffindor common room.

"What's the password Ron?" Harry assumed Ron knew, being a prefect.

"Cockroach Cluster." He said; the door sliding open at the confirmation of the password.

"Cockroach Cluster?" Harry muttered. It wouldn't have been so odd if it weren't for the fact that it had been used as Dumbledore's password before. Generally, passwords weren't used more than once.

They walked into the common room, which had many cushy red chairs and a roaring fire that gave them light. Most of the Gryffindors had gone up into their dormitories, except for a scattered few that lingered on, and Janus and Hermione who were sitting very close together, looking through their new books.

"Over here Harry." Hermione had looked up, seeing Ron and Harry walk into the room.

"No thanks Hermione, I think I'm going to sleep."

"Me too, I'm kind of worn out."

"Suit yourself." Janus waved goodbye to the two boys as they marched up into the dormitories. He put his arms around Hermione and rested his head on her shoulder, continuing the conversion they were having about the book before Ron and Harry had arrived.

Harry and Ron disappeared into the dormitories, making more noise than they probably should have.

"Do they seem different to you?" Hermione closed the book and turned to Janus with a very questioning looking on her face.

"They seem very angry, if that's what you mean." He replied softly.

"Yah, they don't seem to want to be around me." She sounded hurt.

Janus rubbed her arms sympathetically, and replied in a very comforting tone. "Don't be silly Hermione; of course they want to be around you. It's probably just teenage hormones. I mean, I don't see how anybody couldn't want to be around you. You're just so great."

"Now you're just patronizing me." She sounded even more hurt.

"I would never do that, you know that." His voice was very serious.

"I know, but…" She was on the brink of tears.

"Hermione, what's wrong?" Janus was very surprised at her actions. He didn't think how Harry and Ron acted was all that bad, but apparently Hermione felt different.

She shook her head. "Nothing. Nothing's wrong."

"Hermione, you know you can't lie to me. If it's about Harry and Ron, I can talk to them if you'd like." Janus was getting more concerned.

Hermione gave an awkward smile. "I guess."

"I'll talk to them tomorrow then." Janus knew there was something else that was wrong, but if she wasn't going to tell him there wasn't much he could do. So, he hugged her, wrapping his arms around her and soothingly saying, "Everything will be OK, no matter the problem_._"

Hermione was slightly taken aback at his actions, but it wasn't long before she felt very calm in his grasp. She felt as if there was nothing wrong. She cooed quietly and closed her eyes, drifting off into a light sleep.

Janus let out a compassionate sigh. "I will always be here for you Hermione Granger. _Always._"

Harry laid awake in his four poster bed, listening quietly to the sounds of his roommate's slumber, quite furious with himself for acting the way he did earlier that day. Why had he gotten so angry for that matter? Why had he acted so distant? Was he _that_ jealous of Janus over Hermione? He rolled over. It looked like it was going to be another rather sleepless night.

Harry didn't like the night; for ever since Voldemort's return he hardly got any sleep. Once the lights went out and he was left alone with himself his mind began to wonder, _thinking_. All the horrible events in his life began to plague his mind, dancing through his thoughts, and mocking his very existence. During the day these ideas seem to vanish into the nadir of his psyche, only to return each night, haunting him. It was perhaps why he was so frustrated all the time; he didn't sleep, he _couldn't _sleep. Even if he did manage to fall asleep, he was inundated with dreams of death and despair. Countless nights he would lose his friends, who to him were family, to a looming force he couldn't stop, and he began to fear that these dreams were not merely reveries, but premonitions of the future. He feared his dreams would come true, and he would lose the only people he held so dearly.

_Is that why I'm acting like this? I'm afraid I'll lose them? _He asked himself.

_ Can't be, they're only dreams, why would I be so afraid of them?_ A small voice replied.

_ Maybe I should talk to them._ _Yes, that may help._ Deciding to talk to his friends seemed to facilitate, because it wasn't long before he was dead to the world, drifting off into a, with any luck, dreamless slumber.

Harry was suddenly no longer in his bed, but standing in a large open field, which was horrifically filled with bodies, each one devoid of life, and each one with the same warped horror-struck image etched on their faces. Harry walked through the field, passing withered trees whose trunks twist up in rotting decay. The sky was completely black, but the thick mist that hovered silently above the ground emitted a dull white light providing enough luminosity to guide Harry's aimless wandering; for he did not know where he was nor where to go. He kept walking forcing himself not to look at the gruesome bodies, many of which were beginning to fester, and a rancid stench was fuming out of them. He wandered passed broken gravestones, abandoned shacks, and more bodies. Then, a small white light begin to shimmer, in the distance. Its peaceful beauty called to Harry and he burst into a run, trying to reach it. As he tore across the field, dodging the limb bodies and other obtruding objects, the light began to grow larger, and slowly started to change in hue. Once shining white, it was now a light green becoming ever more opaque as Harry approached it. Harry kept running, determined to reach the light for unknown reasons, and it wasn't until it was nearly covering his entire field of vision that he realized what it was.

"_Avada Kedarva" _The voice was cold and snakelike, the voice of Voldemort.

Harry stopped his run and fell backwards; trying to run away, but his fear prevented him. But the spell's target wasn't Harry, and he watched as a shadowy figure slumped to the ground. Harry looked around desperately, but Voldemort was no longer in sight. He slowly crept his way to where the body had dropped, his heart pulsing loudly, almost deafening only to him. He stood over the body and peered through the mist, hoping to unveil the figure Voldemort had killed. He bent over closer, and saw something he didn't want to see. Lying there dead, was a beautiful girl with shiny brown hair and now-dull brown eyes. It was Hermione.

Harry wanted to scream, but he couldn't. He fell backwards, his hands landing on another object. He turned around to see what it was, and there lay Ron, dead too. He jumped back, whimpering frantically. There was Janus, his face cold, no longer containing its peaceful warmth. He stood up; he wanted to run. But where? There was no where to run.

And then he heard laughing; the sly, cold laugh of his most hated enemy. Harry spun around, trying to find him, but only saw more darkness. The mist's light was going out, leaving Harry in a pit of darkness. He continued turning around, looking for some sort of escape point, but there was none, he was alone, in the darkness, his best friends dead. Then he heard the snake voice again, and a burst of green light shot at him.

"NOOOOOOOOOOOOOO!!!!!" He screamed, tearing out of his dream, sitting up violently. His scar burned more painful than it had ever done before, even worse than when Voldemort had touched him. The pain began to overtake and he slumped over, crumpling with a loud thump on the floor; the pain causing him to violently convulse. He heard the dormitory door slam open, and the cry of his friends.

"Harry. HARRY!" It was Hermione. Harry's screams had alerted Janus, who ran up into the dormitory. Hermione followed him, dreadfully worried about Harry. "We need to get him to the hospital wing! Now!"

"Right. I'll take him." It was Janus. He lifted Harry up, and ran out of the room as fast as he could.

The last thing Harry heard before blacking was Hermione crying in fright as she followed Janus as fast as she could.

_Hermione…_


End file.
